Tiffany Black, Beauty Influencer
I grew up in Kayenta, AZ and attended school there. Most of my life was spent surrounded by red dirt and sandstone hills, in a place I felt was so far from anything resembling a big city. My last two years of high school, my family moved to Southern California. Growing up on the reservation I played sports and lived the typical life of a teenager on the rez: traveling by bus for athletics, visiting my great-grandma at sheep camp, attending family gatherings. Never did I think I would be who I am today, living in an Instagram spotlight and interacting with people who follow me for advice.
I grew up knowing I was attracted to bright colors. I was drawn to art, and expressed myself by paying a lot of attention to detail. My passion for art and music is probably what led me down this path to use makeup as a vehicle to express my love for creative expression. My mom would always encourage me and my brothers to always do anything and everything that we are good at. Because she was a teacher, she would always bring home arts and crafts that my little brothers and I could do together as a family. She always encouraged our creative sides. When I was in high school, I took a ceramics class my freshman year and that was the best way I could start putting my ideas into action. I enjoyed every minute in that class, because it took the stress of taking tests and the workload of being an Honors student off my chest. I loved the intricacy in every piece that I would have to make. I loved the smell of the wet clay. I loved the feeling of molding a ball of mud into something so beautiful and original to me. I think that having all this creativity and love for anything artistic has helped me to discover my love and passion for makeup.
I first discovered makeup when I was a senior in high school. Before that, my mom would always try to take me into Sephora, but I was the type of teenager who didn’t care much about it. I would always wait outside of Sephora for my mom so we could leave. I still can’t believe that my mom gave me so many opportunities to buy high-end makeup, but I had no interest in it. It wasn’t until after I had my daughter, Seeley, that I finally felt like I wanted to start wearing makeup. I started out stealing things from my mom’s makeup collection and using them to do my makeup every day. Then, once I started getting better, I purchased my own makeup palette. I’ll always remember the day I was drawn so vividly to the Too Faced Chocolate palette. I practiced everyday with that palette. When I was on Instagram in 2017, Morphe wasn’t that big of a brand yet, but I do remember that some smaller influencers were mostly using their brushes. After getting paid from my first job, I spent my whole paycheck at Morphe. I purchased the 35P, 35M, and the 35T palettes. I think that’s when I seriously realized my love of makeup. First I experimented with color, but as my passion and skill grew, I began to grow my collection of material and looks. I used my free time to develop eye looks and shared them on my Instagram. Slowly, people began to notice.
In the beginning, I was very intimidated because I would watch tutorials and videos on Instagram and YouTube and be afraid to share my looks, or even create videos. It was a huge risk to me. I didn’t see other influencers in the beauty industry who looked like me. More importantly, I had no one who I felt like I could relate to, or was Native. I wanted to start building a platform where I could fill that void for other people who were looking for the same thing in the industry. My goal was to celebrate my culture, and share who I truly was. I still want to pave the way for other people who have passion for makeup like I do, but are too afraid to start.
“I had no one who i felt like i could relate to, or was native. I wanted to start building a platform where I could fill that void for other people.”
The beginning was tough. I practiced my skill a lot and sometimes redid looks or spent hours practicing. Most of my looks were created in the late hours of the night. Then came the video production or the editing of my videos. Posting content to Instagram and deciding what looks to share took time and thought. Developing the content and coming up with ideas and colors to use for my eye makeup art was also time-consuming. As I built my skills, I also looked to other influencers for inspiration and motivation. I think all beauty influencers are somewhat of a family. We’re all out there supporting each other and wanting each other to succeed.
on growing a platform
The first video I ever uploaded to Instagram was using the Morphe 35P palette and it was a “holiday-themed” makeup look. I remember getting so much positive feedback and love from that short tutorial, and everyone asked for more. I was at probably 1,000 followers at the time, and those few people that commented and supported my look definitely made a huge difference. I would read those comments and feel so good about what I was doing and the fact that people were actually enjoying my content. It immediately motivated me to create more videos. I literally did my makeup on my bathroom counter and filmed in our super-small restroom area by the sink. I didn’t have any great lighting at the time, so I was just using the restroom lights and propped my camera on boxes and books that I had laying around. Once I started to see how much my followers loved my looks, I made making content a priority.
Being consistent and interacting with my followers made a huge difference in the growth of my page and my platform. I would make sure that I could do giveaways after each milestone that I would hit, and always give back to those that supported me. A lot of how I figured out how to grow my platform was simply through trial and error. I made sure I listened and learned from my audience. Another huge tip is to always be yourself. I know, cliché, right? But it really does make a difference in your connections with your followers. Showing people your life and showing them that you are a real person is so much better for relating with your audience. I always get messages from people saying they love how “real” I am, and how excited they get when I message them back or respond to them. It does take some time, because people always have questions, but I love to give people advice and guidance.
I recently attended the Melt Cosmetics product launch party in Los Angeles. It was a very surreal moment for me to be surrounded by other well-known beauty influencers. I realized then how huge this opportunity was that someone like me, from a small town in Northern Arizona that most people have never heard of, could be there. This was where I was able to meet Desi Perkins, my role model, someone I’ve looked up to since I started for her amazing work representing her community. I also met the women who began Melt Cosmetics, who were also inspirations for me. I want to be like them, as a person of color representing my community and showcasing my skill and my art. I want those of all gender identities in Native communities to feel like they can look up to someone who represents them and knows where they come from. I want them to see that if they put forth perseverance and grit they can do anything they want to.
Makeup is art. Native peoples have created all forms of art for generations, and it is a permanent aspect of our lives. Our art is very sacred to us, because it comes from Mother Earth, and everything we do has a special meaning. Whether it’s through beading, silversmithing, basket making, rug-weaving, pottery making, painting, drawing, we are all connected with one another through our our passions that we share. We all support one another and our talents. My makeup connects me to my community, because I try to incorporate makeup looks inspired by my Diné culture, or I dedicate makeup looks to raise awareness about a topic that affects us every day. I did a makeup look for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, and I received a lot of positive feedback for that look. I wanted to tell my story, along with hundreds of thousands of other womxn and girls that have experienced sexual assault. I wanted to also raise awareness by sharing with my followers what it means to be an Indigenous womxn in 2019 and how it is growing up as a kid on the rez. This connects me to my community, because I have to stand up and be a voice for those womxn and girls that don’t have the same kind of platform or have been silenced by violence. I feel a responsibility to do so. This ties into my love for makeup, because I am doing what I love, but also incorporating conversations of real-life issues through my art to raise awareness around sensitive topics.
“I wanted to… raise awareness by sharing with my followers what it means to be an Indigenous womxn in 2019 and how it is growing up as a kid on the rez.”
Besides advocacy, I personally feel like any kind of look, no matter if it’s a colorful glam or soft glam, has so much power behind it. I feel like I have so much power when I wear makeup. Without makeup, I feel just as pretty as when I do have it on— I just love the different kind of confidence that makeup gives me when I do wear it.
In the future, I want to see other Indigenous peoples thriving in the beauty industry. I didn’t feel represented for a long time, but once I started to grow and gain more followers, I felt like I had to step into that position and become my own role model for my people. I love being an inspiration for my Indigenous followers, because when they look at me, they can see that they, too, can make it. I now interact with so many talented Indigenous makeup artists, and I love reaching out to them, supporting them, and creating connections with them. I make it a huge priority to let them know that I am here for them. I feel that we collectively are starting to get the recognition we deserve, and it makes me so happy for all the Natives that are a part of campaigns with big brands. I want the beauty industry to be flooded with other Indigenous peoples’ arts and passion, because we deserve positive representation. I want brands and campaigns to think of Indigenous peoples when they are marketing or doing outreach, or even just considering our skin tones and types when creating products. I want them to understand that we, too, are a huge part of the beauty industry.
in her bag (take notes!)
Current skincare regimen products:
- ACURE Radically Rejuvenating Facial Scrub $12.99
- Muddy Body Detox Clay Mask $23.99
- Clinique Acne Solutions Clarifying Lotion $17
- MAD HIPPIE Eye Cream $24.99
- MAD HIPPIE Face Cream $25.99
- GLAMGLOW Glowstarter Mega Illuminating Moisturizer $49
- Milk Makeup Hydrating Oil Solid Facial Oil $26
- ACURE The Essentials Argan Oil $9.99
- Good Molecules Overnight Exfoliating Treatment $6
- Milk Makeup KUSH Growhouse Lash + Brow Serum $48
- Milk Makeup KUSH Lip Balm
Favorite Indigenous Owned Beauty Products:
Cheekbone Beauty:
Perfect Brows Eyebrow Gel $19
Warrior Women Liquid Lipstick (favorites: Cindy, Devery, Autumn, Bethany) $29
Earth Cheekbone Contouring Kit $45
Stardust Highlighter Palette $45
Prados Beauty:
Sedona Brush Set $25
Blue Skies Brush Set $25
Baby Boo Blue Brush Set $28
Anissa Lashes $15
Jackie Lashes $12
Alexia Lashes $15
Top 4 Favorite Lashes:
Prados Beauty| ALEXIA $15
The Makeup Shack| Giselle $8.99
Anastasia Beverly Hills| DOMINA $12
Tati Lashes| TLMITCHELL $15
Top 5 Favorite Brands for Eyeshadow Palettes:
1. Melt Cosmetics
Smoke Sessions Palette ($48)
Radioactive Palette ($48)
Vida Palette ($58)
Muerte Palette ($58)
2. Coloured Raine Cosmetics
Power Palette ($29)
Vivid Pigment Palette ($50)
Queen of Hearts ($42)
3. MORPHE BRUSHES
The James Charles Palette ($39)
39S Such A Gem Artistry Palette ($35)
39L Hit The Lights Artistry Palette ($42)
The Jeffree Star Artistry Palette ($35)
4. The Makeup Shack
Nightfall Palette ($16.99)
Rainforest Palette ($12.99)
Majestic Eyeshadow Palette ($16.99)
5. Anastasia Beverly Hills
Norvina Pro Pigment Vol. 2 ($60)
Norvina Pro Pigment Vol. 3 ($60)
Jackie Aina Palette ($45)
Norvina Pro Pigment Vol. 1 ($60)
Top 3 Brands for Favorite Brushes:
1. The Makeup Shack
2. Prados Beauty
3. Morphe Brushes
Favorite Eyebrow Products:
L.A. Girl Cosmetics | Brow Pomade, Soft Brown $8
Kat Von D Beauty | Brow Struck Dimension Powder, Light Brown $8
Anastasia Beverly Hills | Brow Powder Duo, Medium Brown $23
Cheekbone Beauty | Perfect Brows Eyebrow Gel, Black $19
— @tifffay, as told to Changing Womxn Collective. interviews have been condensed and edited for clarity.